Democrats slam Ryan as threat to social safety net

Democrats said Sunday that Mitt Romney, by picking Rep. Paul Ryan to fill out his presidential ticket, has set up this year's election as a referendum on the deep cuts to the social safety net that the GOP's top budget man says are needed to fix federal finances.

Ryan pick gives Romney camp a jolt of energy

Newly minted vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan hit the stump this weekend with a level of energy that seemed to boost Mitt Romney's entire campaign, giving the presumptive nominee a much-needed change in the narrative while adding another high-profile fundraiser and campaigner to deploy across the country.

Consumer bureau seeks sleuths for bad bankers

The federal government's newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is recruiting investigators in ads that suggest the agency plans to go undercover to pursue cases against banks, credit card companies and other financial companies.

Kyrgyzstan eyes law to curb extravagance

In Kyrgyzstan, opulence is not an option for weddings and funerals — it's an obligation. Now the government is trying to keep its citizens from bankrupting themselves.

IG says F-35 cost can't be tamed

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is the white whale of the Defense Department — a stealth jet designed to work for all branches of the armed forces — but at a total cost of $1.5 trillion, it's also a program that analysts say is an epic boondoggle that neither President Obama nor his GOP challenger, Mitt Romney, has a realistic plan to get under control.

London Olympics 2012: Summer Games end with key victory for women

As Angel McCoughtry stood on the highest podium Saturday night in London, the United States' women's basketball team having just won the gold medal in its fifth straight Olympics, her mind couldn't help but wander to a different place.

CURL: Game-changing pick for Romney, worst nightmare for Obama

Well, that didn't take long. By 11 a.m. Saturday, shortly after presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney appeared with his newly picked running mate, the Senate Democratic leader fired out a bitter e-mail.

Maryland House lawmakers set to work on gambling

Maryland House lawmakers appear ready to make drastic changes to a gambling expansion bill that the Senate passed last week, but Democratic House leaders still don't know whether they will have enough votes.

From the Olympics to Congress

From Mitt Romney to President Obama to House Speaker John A. Boehner, plenty of political figures have weighed in on the Olympics the last two weeks, cheering on American athletes in public displays of patriotism. Yet, on a few rare occasions in congressional history, the Olympian and lawmaker were one in the same.

Inside the Beltway: The Hollywood Script

He may have matinee idol looks and the hard body of an action hero, but Mitt Romney's newly cast running mate is already sending shudders through Hollywood.

Health law readiness follows state, party lines

The District and Maryland are moving aggressively to implement virtual markets of insurance plans, becoming national leaders in carrying out President Obama's vision for health care reform, while their Republican neighbors in Virginia remain less than eager to implement the controversial law.

McCain: Attacks on Romney 'succeeded to a certain degree'

The attacks on presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney by the Obama campaign and its supporters are disgraceful — but they seem to be working, Sen. John McCain said Sunday.

London 2012 closing ceremony: 'Happy and glorious' Olympics come to rocking end

With a little British pomp and a lot of British pop, London brought the curtain down on a glorious Olympic Games on Sunday in a spectacular, technicolor pageant of landmarks, lightshows and lots of fun.

Egypt's president retires defense minister

Egypt's Islamist president ordered the retirement of the defense minister and chief of staff on Sunday and canceled the military-declared constitutional amendments that granted the top generals wide powers previously reserved for the head of state.

London Olympics 2012: U.S. beats Spain 107-100 for gold in men's basketball

This was no Dream Team. This was reality.

Sikh temple holds first Sunday service since attack

Hundreds of people gathered at a Sikh temple in suburban Milwaukee spoke of redemption, unity and strength during the first Sunday service there since a gunman killed six people before fatally shooting himself.

Commentary

DECKER: Romney-Ryan ticket takes fight to Obama

Mitt Romney has proved everyone wrong. The common wisdom was the presumptive Republican nominee for president was going to make a safe pick, going with an old Washington hand from an important swing state for vice president.

GREEN: Ryan pick is popular, bold

The reaction to the Romney campaign's announcement of Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as the GOP's vice-presidential running mate has already validated the choice. Republicans had been suffering from lingering nervousness about Mitt Romney's persistent nice-guy image and a field operation that was sluggish warming up to full-attack mode. Mr. Ryan's reputation of political fearlessness puts that to rest, and Democrats are reeling.